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Hannah works with the company in total partnership. We are not only involved in the constant progression and development she takes the project through but are of partial influence to them as it is due to her constant collaboration with the people she works with as well as the continuous reassessing and addressing of issues that crop up, that this evolvement process takes place. The relationship we, as a company, have with Hannah is one which is open and honest, she has complete trust in the set of skills we all bring to the table and we have complete trust in her.

“I trust Hannah, as a director 100%. She uses everyone’s skills in the group to create the best piece of work that could possibly be created. I admire that she has a vision and sticks with it but never stops assessing and addressing new issues that occur during the process. As a director, Hannah keeps the energy of the group at a constant high and makes sure to keep us all informed about what is going on with the piece outside of rehearsals, such as tech problems or exciting new developments within the digital media aspect of the piece”.

Kirstie Amber Mahon – member of the cast of Heterophobia, second year Applied Performance student at Birmingham School of Acting.

“After everything we’re going to do to you, you’re going to be a real woman, and you’re never going to act like this again” being used as words of justification to a young woman who was about to be ‘correctively’ raped is absolutely disgusting. How can you ‘cure’ someone of being gay? Being gay isn’t a disease or an illness, it isn’t something you choose and isn’t something that can be ‘corrected’ or knocked out of you. It just is. ‘Corrective’ rape is yet another vile and unacceptable thing happening in today’s society. Why is it so prominent and what are we doing in order to stop it?

Projects such as Heterophobia have such a relevant place within society today. Using social and political objectives in order to inform, educate and raise awareness of the issues we are currently facing is detrimental to change. If there is a lack of education when it comes to dealing with these issues, then how can change ever be brought about? Although immediate and collective change is something the world needs, it is projects such as Heterophobia that bring about the stepping stones into raising awareness amongst our younger generation and initiating change when it comes to vile prejudice in the world we live in.

It is shocking that in this day and age only a quarter of the young people in this survey said they had learnt about safer sex within a same-sex relationship at school! Surely in order for schools to play a role in making every student feel comfortable and accepted within this ‘safe’ environment and for discrimination to completely stop, the acknowledgement of homosexual relationships, within education, is equally as important as heterosexual ones?

As I go to reflect on the project, the fact that heterophobia, as a word, is a predominantly unrecognised word other than on Urban Dictionary http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=heterophobia, whereas homophobia is a vastly recognised word, surely announces in it’s own right that there lies a problem surrounding prejudice and sexuality. It only confirms, for me, the fact that heterophobia doesn’t exist whereas homophobia does. I am not in any way suggesting the fact that heterophobia not existing is a negative but am confirming the fact that homophobia is very present and therefor a huge issue within our society today. This confirms further my passion and total commitment to this incredibly exiting, current and needed project.

Heterophobiacould not be more relevant.

An issue discussed in todays rehearsal space through a Value Continuum exercise facilitated by our director, Hannah, was the use of the term ‘straight’ to describe someone’s sexual orientation. For me, the term ‘straight’ being used to describe someone’s sexuality, is a term I have real issues with due to its opposing term being ‘bent’, a terminology I totally disagree with. The fact that the oxford dictionary’s definition of ‘bent’ is “dishonest; corrupt: a bent cop” (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/bent?q=bent) deems this word/term for me completely derogatory. It is due to this that I therefor cannot accept the term ‘straight’ as the pair lie hand in hand and if it were the opposing term, surely it would deem that sexuality, the ‘straight’ sexuality, the more ‘acceptable’ and less “corrupt” of the two.

“At twenty years old, having met someone that I would happily spend the rest of my life with, being head over heels and all the romantic stuff, you would think that two years ago, at the legal age of eighteen, I could have tied the knot with this person right? Wrong. At the age of twenty I am only just allowed to marry. This isn’t because of my age, my parent’s denial or my lack of good reason… Until 2013 I did not have the choice to marry because I AM GAY. To some people, not being able to marry may not seem like much of an issue but, what about if I word it differently? For a large proportion of our population the freedom of choice wasn’t applicable, and still isn’t in many countries. Why, in a world that is so capable of development, proven by how drastically technology has spiraled into a forever developing whirlwind due to the growing and expanding minds of humanity, are a large proportion of our human race still battling to be considered equal? This is why I am completely committed to Heterophobia and the message it brings to our younger generation”.

Kirstie Amber Mahon – member of the cast of Heterophobia, second year Applied Performance student at Birmingham School of Acting.

“In this world we are all equal, we all have a say, we all listen and we all care, right? Wrong! In this world, our world, no one is equal, money rules above intellect, people are famed for their looks not for their triumphs, and gender, race, religion, class and sexual orientation are labels given to classify the masses. No one is individual because no one avoids classification. Few listen and even fewer care. Those in power do little for fear of disturbing the ‘natural order of things’. One man rules over another without the knowledge of the needs of the ‘lesser man’. Discrimination, whilst illegal, is still a daily occurrence. One bullies another because of differences. Countries go to war over laws and religion. Governments are filled with idiots given titles because of their heritage and class. Two people doing the same job are paid differently because of gender. People in the streets fight because of different races, religions, beliefs and even because they live in separate locations. People are labeled ‘bent’ meaning broken and somehow less than whole because of their sexual orientation.

It astounds me that in the 21st century, our world still suffers from backward thinking medieval attitudes. These mindsets are a direct result of our world’s ignorance towards others. It is because of this ignorance that I feel knowledge and therefore education is key. My views, as stated above, mean that I am proud to call myself a cast member of Heterophobia, a cutting edge musical that challenges the attitudes and ignorance that are currently plaguing society today”.

George J Meredith – member of the cast of Heterophobia, second year Applied Performance student at Birmingham School of Acting.